


A cat in the tree (Birds, beasts and relatives)

by Drifting_clouds



Series: My family and other animals [2]
Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: M/M, crackish, silly fic, with a pinch of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-02
Updated: 2015-07-02
Packaged: 2018-04-07 09:08:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4257600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drifting_clouds/pseuds/Drifting_clouds
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A year in the life of a shadowkitty dealing with birds, beasts and silly people in love</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Kitty and skein

**Author's Note:**

> This story has been sitting on my hard drive for about two years before I decided I might as well finish translating it. I feel the need to point out that English is not my mother tongue and the fic is not betaed so I aplogize for the mess...

It is a bright and sunny day when news of Robert Baratheon and his court travelling north reaches Winterfell. Sansa lets out a little shriek as she claps her hands in delight, leaning over to whisper something in Jeyne Pool’s ear. _Something about lovely silk dresses and knights in shining armours, no doubts_ , Arya thinks sourly as she scoffs at the two girls.  
  
Looking down at her needlework she frowns at the result, wondering how the delicate wild flowers she was supposed to embroider have managed to turn into a tangle of giant sea monsters. The septa is going to have a fit when she realizes how crooked her stitches still are then she’ll have a quiet word with her lady mother and Arya will definitely say goodbye to the archery lessons she has bribed Theon into giving her.  
The little girl looks down at Kraken, dozing beside her feet and smiles at the plan forming in her head. Careful as not to unravel the whole skein, she slowly dangles it in front of the shadowcat’s half-closed eyes, her smile turning into a wide grin as the animal’s tail twitches nervously then begins to sweep the floor from side to side.  
  
Suddenly, Kraken swats at the skein with so much force that Arya lets out a little cry of surprise as her needlework is wrenched from her hands and clatters to the floor. The shadowcat pounces on it with a thundering roar, the wooden frame cracking under her weight before sharp claws sink into the embroidered fabric, tearing it to shreds.

When Ned Stark hears the screams and bursts into the room, the last thing he expects to see is septa Mordane standing on top a chair as a shadowcat with a pink bow around her neck chases a battered tangle of yarn around. The lord of Winterfell casts one last look at Arya and Sansa for once laughing together as sisters and closes the door, not bothering to hide the grin on his face at the small miracle.


	2. Kitty and tree (interlude)

Kraken aka Fluffykitty (courtesy of Rickon) or that-good-for-nothing-thievin’-beast (courtesy of the cook) is languidly sprawled on a branch, dozing off with her legs dangling in the air. She has spent the better part of the morning hunting in the woods and now that her belly is no longer rumbling, she can finally enjoy a well deserved siesta.  
  
In little more than a year she has grown from cute kitty to fearsome predator with knife-sharp teeth, but she can still get away with things the direwolves couldn’t even dream of. Whenever Catelyn finds a cherished tapestry torn to bits or a wooden trunk suddenly sports some new carvings that suspiciously look like claw marks, Kraken’s philosophy is really simple: give people a wide-eyed, innocent gaze and purr. Direwolves can’t purr and this is why she always gets to sleep near the fireplace and those poor suckers spend most of their nights on the wrong side of the door.  
  
Kraken really likes them, though. Each one of them is special to her: Nymeria and Shaggydog are the perfect hunting companions, Ghost might glare silently at her, yet he always leaves her the best morsels, Lady is kind and patient and Summer is incredibly smart. But it is Grey Wind that she loves the most and the big direwolf is still as protective of her as when he dove into the pool under the weird white tree to keep her from drowning.

With a jaw-splitting yawn, the shadowcat gets up and stretches her forelegs before flexing her back with gusto. From under the big oak tree with its twisted trunk and big gnarled branches comes the sound of snarling barks. Kraken looks down at the six wild beasts roaring in fury as they leap over and over again as they try to catch her tail (which always dangles strategically out of reach). Another yawn and the shadowcat jumps on top of the wall separating one of the most secluded parts of the courtyard from the Godswood, disappearing into the dark forest on the other side with barely a sound. Because Kraken might be fluffy and cute, but nothing brightens her day as when she can rile a whole pack of direwolves and get away with it.


	3. Kitty and Cat

The sun is already setting when the impressive walls of Winterfell come into sight. The day has been so tiring that even Rickon is finally quiet and Jory Cassel is riding beside him, ready to catch the nodding boy before he could fall from his pony and tumble face-first into the thick pine needles carpeting the forest floor. In the courtyard, Ned pulls his horse to a stop and quickly dismounts, stretching his back with a grunt and handing the reins to one of the stable boys.  
Theon is looking down at the shadowcat he bundled into his cloak. Beside him, Robb wags a finger in front of the critter’s nose, chuckling when a tiny paw clumsily tries to catch it. The two young men share a furtive grin as Rickon - who is once again wide awake – reaches for Kraken, holding his arms out at Theon with a pleading look. Ned sighs once again and motions his ward to follow him. _Best get it over with_ , he tells the young man as he walks along the hallway with Theon and the others trailing after him like a flock of obedient ducklings.  
  
Catelyn and the girls are in the big sitting room and the lady of Winterfell looks up from her needlework in time to see her husband standing in the doorway, feet shuffling uneasily under her scrutiny.  
  
“What is it?” she asks with a knowing smile “which one of our sons fell into a bog or rolled around a patch of nettles?”  
  
Ned coughs and finally steps inside, the shadowcat squirming and wailing in his hands. Catelyn remains incredibly impassive even as Arya tosses away the book that she was pretending to read and both girls squeal, rushing towards their father (and the cub).  
  
“What is that thing, Ned?” she inquires with a frown.  
  
“It’s a shadowkitty!” Rickon beams, sneaking into the room and looking up at his mother with those big brown eyes of his.  
  
“It’s a shadowcat” Ned confirms.  
  
“And what is a shadowcat doing here, in Winterfell?”  
  
“We found it in the woods…”  
  
Ned mentally braces himself for the questions that are going to follow, because a scene like this one took place in this very room not even nine months ago when they rescued the litter of direwolf pups. _What are those things? Just how big are they going to get? What happens when one of them mistakes Rickon for a goat and breaks his fast on him?_  
  
Hence, he’s rather surprised when his wife lets out an impatient sigh and stretches her arms out, very much like Rickon just did in the courtyard. The lord of Winterfell duly hands the cub over, grinning when Kraken starts to purr and both Sansa and Arya almost melt at the sound. Catelyn remains impassive, her eyes narrowing as she studies the shadowcat dangling limply from her hands like a wet cloth.  
  
“I hate you Ned Stark” she says, a small smile finally tugging at her lips “didn’t our kids have enough pets?”  
  
“Oh no mother… this one is Theon’s” Bran tells her calmly.  
  
Cat looks at the young man squirming beside Robb ( _always standing beside him_ , she thinks idly). The Ironborn. The prisoner. The outsider no one really wants in Winterfell, but who has somehow managed to become part of their family.  
  
“You will take care of it, is that understood?”  
  
Theon looks surprised even as he nods quickly.  
  
“I will, my lady.”  
  
Then Arya gets her hands on Kraken and Sansa coos, while the boys all start talking at the same time filling the big room with the echo of their laughter.  
  
Leaning closer to Ned, Catelyn whispers:  
  
“So, my sweet lord… when will I finally get some outlandish pet as well?”  
  
“A giant fire-breathing dragon, perhaps? Or maybe one of those lizard-lions on house Reed’s sigil… I bet Rickon would just love to stick his head into a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth!”  
  
"Can I have a lion-lizard mother?" the little boy begs as he tugs at her dress "please, can I? Oh and a basilisk... and a mammoth..."  
  
_And of course he had to hear that..._  
  
"What about a giant bear?" Ned inquires innocently.  
  
"Yeah!" Rickon beams.  
  
"Ned!"  
  
"What? At least he didn't ask for an ice spider..."  
  
"Mother, can I..."  
  
“I really hate you Ned Stark!”  
  
She tells him once again with a huff, but the quick kiss that follows somehow belies her words.


	4. Kitty and birds (interlude part two)

Kraken is a natural born hunter. And it truly is a mystery how this skill managed to develop despite pretty much every person in Winterfell has tried to thwart the god-given talent. _Leave the cows alone, keep your paws off that sheep and NO, humans are definitely off limits… no matter how inviting they smell, so stop sniffing at the baby, you bad bad kitty._ How could a young shadowcat possibly express her full potential with so much negativity all around? Fortunately for her, though, the thick forest surrounding Winterfell is literally crawling with rabbits, deer and wild boars that are dying to be hunted and the direwolves always let her tag along as they explore the area.  
  
But, there’s something that Kraken never messes with: birds. Because birds are mean, cunning and real scary. For instance, the ravens that maester Luwin keeps in those big cages in the rookery and that will caw and peck at her nose whenever she gets close to the wooden bars to take a sniff at them (not to mention that the old man has the annoying habit of cuffing her on the head when he catches her skulking around the room).   
Once the maester forgot to lock the biggest cage and Kraken almost got an eye gouged out when she wasn’t quick enough to avoid one of those screeching demons hopping around the room as if he owned it.  
Chickens and geese cannot fly, but they glare spitefully at her or make such a fuss that she has to give up the chase before someone comes to their rescue, usually brandishing a pitchfork. Even sparrows seem to make fun of her as they flit from one branch to the next, always a mere feather’s breadth away from her claws.  
  
Yet birds also happen to be very tasty, she muses as the heavy iron ladle whizzes past her and crashes against the kitchen wall. Behind her, the cook is shouting and the shadowcat doesn’t need to turn to see him standing in the middle of the room like a furious giant. So she tightens her jaws around the pheasant that one of the kitchen maids has just finished plucking and darts off.


	5. Kitty and silly boys

Theon stares at Robb, idly wiping the sweat off his brow, only to scramble backward in time to parry the sword blow aimed at his chest. It is not a particularly vicious blow, but as he stumbles and tries to regain his balance, the back of his boots catch an exposed tree root and Theon finds himself falling, landing on the grass with a surprised yelp.  
  
“Greyjoy” Robb says, a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth as he stands there with his hands on his hips “maybe if you’d stop daydreaming like Sansa does every time she hears the romantic tale of Florian and Jonquil or another of those love stories where everyone is either miserable or jumps off a cliff at the end…”  
  
Theon blushes scarlet, knowing full well that the younger man has hit home, but hoping that he might mistake his flushed skin for rightful indignation. Because yes, he was indeed daydreaming, but it’s definitely not his fault that the sun is making Robb’s curls glow softly under the golden rays.  
  
Stalking closer, Robb rests the tip of his training sword on Theon’s chest, his blue eyes looking down intently at him. Suddenly, Kraken pounces and slams into the younger man, sending him sprawling beside Theon. When the young man splutters indignantly, the shadowcat licks his face the way a mother dealing with a wayward offspring would before moving away to flop down under a big sentinel tree.

“Thanks for the help, fuzzball” Robb grumbles as soon as he can catch his breath, turning his head to glare at Grey Wind.

Cracking one eye open, the direwolf’s only response to the accusation is a loud yawn followed by a quick shake of the huge body that sends a cloud of silvery fur flying everywhere.

“Oh, I doubt you were ever in any real danger” Theon grins as he stands and holds out his hand to pull the younger man up.

Robb grabs it and gets to his feet as well, but he doesn’t let go, lacing their fingers together instead. Theon looks down at their joined hands then up again, blue-grey eyes wide and startled as they stare at one another as if they are really seeing each other for the first time. _And it’s a bit like one of those romantic stories that make Sansa’s heart flutter_ , Theon thinks as Robb’s free hand comes up to cradle his cheek.  
  
They never hear the sound of gravel crunching under sturdy boots nor the ominous growl that follows as both Kraken and Grey Wind leap to their feet, sending whoever was about to turn round the corner on a hasty retreat. Robb leans forward with a small smile and their lips meet as Theon presses against the younger man, fingers grabbing at his leather armour. In the sunny clearing, the Ironborn and the prince of Winterfell kiss for the first time while two resolute sentinels watch over them, silently taking care of their pack.


	6. Kitty and kings

The arrival of the king and his royal court at Winterfell is a grandiose affair of horses, knights and gilded carriages. Lined up in the middle of the big courtyard, the Starks are looking at Robert Baratheon, but it is actually the queen with her blond, flowing hair that draws everyone’s attention. Fur-lined cloak wrapped around her neck, Catelyn smiles wryly as she notices the enraptured way Sansa stares at Cersei Lannister before her daughter’s eyes inevitably stray to prince Joffrey standing beside her parents.  
  
Ned kneels to kiss the queen’s ring in deference while all around them knights and bannermen dismount with weary sighs. Robert has just finished hugging Catelyn when a massive figure jumps down from the wall beside the library tower, landing in a corner of the courtyard with barely a sound. Little by little, everyone turn to gape at the black creature moving forward as smooth as silk, silvery-white patterns dancing across its massive back and legs.  
  
A couple of women shriek and Robert’s huge warhorse whinnies nervously, almost trampling over a poor groom in his haste to bolt away from danger. The Kingsguards’ hands reach for their swords, drawing them only to lower the shiny blades in confusion when not a single Northerner reacts to the threat.  
  
Kraken walks calmly as people and horses part to let her through, holding her head up high. Catelyn gives Ned an exasperated look that clearly says _do something_ , but the man can easily see her amusement at Cersei’s discomfort. Robert Baratheon almost takes a step back when the big animal struts past him, but he’s the king so he holds his ground while Joffrey hides behind the big man with the scarred face, sending Arya into a fit of giggles.  
  
Unaware of the stir that she’s causing, Kraken stops to bump her head against Rickon’s shoulder before she heads toward the corner where Theon and Jon, outcasts for different reasons, have been relegated.  
  
Theon heaves a sigh as the shadowcat sits down royally on her haunches between them and stares straight ahead, fully aware that all eyes are now on him as well. _Thanks for nothing, you stupid feline_ , he hisses softly, snorting at the smug little smile on Jon’s face.  
  
_When the king coughs and tries to go back to his speech, he takes advantage of that to cast a furtive look across the courtyard, his eyes meeting Robb’s as the younger man stands proudly beside his father, smirking at him before focusing back on the king._  
  
Suddenly Jon leans close, his very barely above a whisper:  
  
“That’s strange…”  
  
“Shut up, Snow” Theon grumbles, before asking with a sigh “What’s strange?”  
  
Jon shrugs and pretends to ignore him as he slowly scratches the silky fur between Kraken’s ears, watching her eyes close like crescents in ecstatic bliss.  
  
“Nothing” he says, only to add as an afterthought “it’s just that when that overgrown kitty of yours jumps down that wall…”  
  
When my shadowcat jumps down that particular wall, it means that she was in the big oak tree beside the kennels. And if she was in there, the young man pales, may the Drowned God protect us all!  
  
“Oh...”  
  
“Oh.” nods Jon with impressive composure.  
  
There’s no time to add anything else, really, because a pack of six giant direwolves rushes into the main courtyard like a storm cloud. A cloud of claws and fangs, of foaming muzzles and burning eyes. Again the ladies scream (a couple of them even swoon), again swords are unsheathed and again the Starks remain impassive as if that scene was just as common as the sun rising in the East.  
  
With a blatant disregard for her own life, Kraken seems to ignore the direwolves’ movements as they cut through the crowd, concentrating on grooming her coat instead. A split second before they close in on her, the shadowcat’s eyes narrow to slits and she darts away as light as a feather, the whole pack hot on her heels as she disappeared behind the armoury.  
  
King Robert stammers, forgetting what he was about to say as Rickon and Tommen suddenly become the best buddies in the seven kingdoms and run after the wayward animals followed by Bran and Arya. In the chaos that follows, Robb takes advantage of the situation to slide past knights and bannermen until he’s close enough to grasp Theon’s hand and drag the young man away with him while the blond-haired Myrcella stares dreamily at them.  
  
“So, Ned…” the king coughs “interesting pets you keep up here in the North…”  
  
“Oh, wait until you see mine” Catelyn says, a smug smile curling her lips up.  
  
There will be time to worry about the reason behind Robert’s arrival, because the horrified expression on the queen’s face at the unconventional welcome the royal family just received is definitely rewarding. And when Ned wraps an arm around her waist she knows that her lord agrees with her.


End file.
